et si perdiderit
by Bluecoloredlies
Summary: Bad Cop never had to weigh who was more important-his parents or his counterpart. He needed both. So because of a moment of his hesitation, he lost both of them. Some language and violence, nothing too bad.


"Sir." It wasn't a question. Business never allowed questions, and when he seldom did he made sure they were short and quick. Certainly not like the words that lingered in him, in his mouth, at the tip of his tongue that left a horrid taste to him. He saw the thousand possibilities that Business would put on his parents to make him be punished.

 _Don't worry. He probably brought them to say hello. That's probably it. He honestly can't do it on our parents. Don't stress about it. He can't, can he? He may threaten us, maybe, but he can't kill them. He can't hurt them. Don't worry._

Good Cop said in the back of his mind, trying to sooth Bad Cop's nerves. But despite his words, Bad Cop couldn't help the fear holding him like chains.

* * *

"…son?"

 _He really_ did _it! He did it! Our parents are Kragled!_ Good Cop was panicking quicker than Bad Cop had been able to take hold of the situation.

 _Oh no what should we do! What…_

Shut up. I can't hear myself think.

His parents. Stuck to the floor like glue. Oh, no. what _should_ he do? What did Business do? Fear wrapped him like chains, and every part of his body responded. His parents-

Then his father must have seen the fear in his eyes, because he quickly added that he was fine, except for that he was 'a bit stuck'. Don't you see that it's the exact reason you're not fine! He growled inwardly, sorely tempted to shout it out. Good Cop was still too panicked to think properly. To form a plan, any plan, to beg and grovel to Business if he could _just let their parents go_ … but it wouldn't work. It didn't work.

He saw hundreds, thousands of people, begging Business to please help, please listen, _please just spare them out of pity._ He saw Business turn down every single one of them. He knew. He was always there, watching if the prisoner wouldn't escape, and torturing them at needed. He knew the only way was to follow Business's orders. He knew it firsthand. He did. He always knew.

He knew. Because in the end, there is no alternative. There is only death and despair. He knew it ever since he was a child, ever since he saw that he was different than the others. Others didn't have two people sharing one body. Other people weren't a breath away from abuse from their boss. Other people didn't know that the world would be ending, very soon.

He knew that there was no choice from the start, because the answer was always shoved to him.

It isn't really a choice when there was only one option.

"So, you feel bad for your parents." Business whispered into his ear, saying words that could as well be his doom. "You want to help them, don't you? Go ahead."

The edge of the sprayer that was moving along with Business's motions stopped and moved, lingering just over their parent's chest. The claws slowly rotated menacingly as it waited for the order to finish them. He could see its edge getting closer and closer, licking the shirt of his parents as they tried to lean away from the horrible claws.

Finish the job.

Bad Cop immediately dawned on the realization of what Business was offering. To Kragle his parents, but to live. To defy Business's orders, and die. If Bad Cop didn't follow his orders, it was likely that Business would kill him, and _then_ Kragle his parents. His parents wouldn't die immediately even if Kragled; Business had told him that it only held them there, slowly suffocating to death because they couldn't breath, in or out. The victim's lungs would become paralyzed, and with their mind fully operating they would shrivel up inside, not moving a wink even after they were nothing but frozen statues. Not a pretty way to die. It was slow and equally painful, but during that time he could make a plan to rescue them somehow. All this passed his head in less than a second.

His decision was made. The obvious answer that Business had shoved into his arms.

"Of course, sir."

But as he reached for the button, Good Cop, who had somehow escaped the flurry of panic, stopped him.

"No!"

* * *

As they wrestled for control, each desperately trying to convince the other, they could feel the stares of their parents and Business.

 _What should we do?_ He thought in panic. They couldn't stay like this forever, even if that gave him an escape of the horrible choice he could do it for hours, trying to take control. But he couldn't, _they_ couldn't, because soon Business would make them decide. The hell with the Kragle! The hell with Business…

Then another horrifying thought entered his head.

If the Kragle was permanent… he shuddered at the thought. No. it wouldn't. It couldn't. But Business had said that even that one of his most powerful relics couldn't reverse the Kragle's damage as he had wanted so. It was one of Business's most prized possessions, and even after he finally got his hands on the Kragle he waited for years to make his plan as perfectly as possible as he could until he would put it into action. The man in front him was a cunning one, planning out every step of whatever he was going to do. This man would not allow any mistakes or flaws, and if things got out of hand he punished the ones responsible severely to make sure it didn't happen again. Bad Cop wasn't much of a guesser, but it didn't take him long to realize that Business would have calculatedly let the Special to escape so he could punish the cops. After all, for years he had nothing, and when he did make mistakes Good Cop used his talk, persuasive manner and managed to get them out of trouble. Business was a hot tempered man, and he could do anything to change anything that was 'less than perfect'. But their parents? Why pull them into this mess? Why?

If their parents were permanently stuck like that, and would die there, unable to talk or blink or even breath, and suffocate but you couldn't tell even after years ago they wouldn't be able to tell that their parents were alive or long dead…

Horrible. He couldn't have that. He couldn't bear that. He had to save them. Not use the Kragle.

He realized his mistake.

 _Oh, shit._ But he really was in denial. It was true. He didn't want to kill them. He couldn't.

And that gave a weakness to his defense, and Good Cop came crashing in.

"I-"Good Cop choked on the word. Bad Cop's last attempt to take control had apparently failed. "I can't! They're innocent!"

 _Great._ Bad Cop snarled at Good Cop. _Now you've done it._

* * *

The sensation was almost fluffy at first, like cotton tracing his face. But then the pain came.

His left eye first. The Q-tip rubbed down from his eyebrow to his chin, taking away half his sight and a portion of his mouth as well. Business was talking, talking away in the tone he always used when he punished them. But this was worse, much worse.

He wanted to scream that it hurt so much, to stop, but he couldn't even take out a whimper out of half of his face. And then the tip left him for a millisecond, and he thought it was over, all done. Half his face was gone but he could manage somehow. Anyhow. He didn't care. He wanted the pain to stop. It was just so slow, so painfully agonizing all that took like his face was scrubbed in acid just to hurt him. It wasn't possible for one individual to feel so much pain.

Please, stop. He half-begged. He heard Bad Cop say something, the heck just talking, but he couldn't catch any words in it. All he caught was parts.

 _…_ _y._ Nothing. _You a…_.. Nothing, again. It terrified him that Bad Cop wasn't there, but the acid, still stinging on his face, conquered him that he couldn't think about anything. It _burned,_ and he wanted to waste away with it.

Then the tip came back again.

This time it had more force in it, more hatred filled in the few strokes that he couldn't even think. He tried to scream but he didn't have a mouth to talk anymore, and suddenly the world was a hazy blur. The side of his spectacles somehow remained on longer, but with a small shake of the Q-tip's owner it was gone as well. His face was now a bit of mush, a smudge on his skin that connected to the Q-tip's end. Then even that disappeared, and he was nothing, nothing at all, not even a trace left in the body to indicate that he had once inhabited it. _The hell_ with Business, he just didn't stop and it hurt _ithurtsomuchstopnoplease_

Then he disappeared.

It was slow. First he was blinded, then gone mute, deaf, and then the whole sensation melted away, and he knew he was fading away. Not sensing anything was his first, and it felt like someone had blocked him from the rest of the world.

He was worried. Worried sick that he might die, but worried of Bad Cop more than fear for himself. He was leaving him. He didn't want to.

Then there was whiteness. Like a gentle rippling in a calm pond, it moved across in small circles, getting bigger and bigger then abruptly broke into two. It was a beautiful scene, but Good Cop was by some reason scared of the whiteness. He didn't know why.

And he was dying.

And all this happened because of the Piece of Resistance. Because of the Kragle. Because of Business trying make the world 'perfect'. Because he'd lost the Special and their parents were about to take the brunt of Business's anger and he couldn't let them do so and now he was

He couldn't think anymore, because the light consumed him and just like that, he was gone.

* * *

Bad Cop couldn't think. He'd never had the idea, the sheer thought that Good Cop would be gone.

And the emptiness _terrified_ him. It was like he had a vast hole left in his heart, roughly took away and leaving traces of scars in him.

He felt Good Cop's pain, felt every moment of it. He kept trying to ask him anything, anything to get an answer, but he got none.

It hurt. Hurt that he couldn't do anything. He was supposed to save Good Cop, be the barrier between his happiness and the real world. Protecting him from the rougher world. He was Good Cop's protector, his savior.

He used to be.

If only he had the security more tightly blocked so the girl wouldn't have come. If only he had been a bit faster. If only he caught the Special. If only he had Kragled his parents before Good Cop took control. If only, if only, if only.

He came out, and turned to face his presence. Lord Business.

And he heard Business's voice. The 'Lord' still sounded angry, despite what he just did to him. _You even don't have the decency to stop, don't you_? He mused. "…or are you going to be stuck having a _tea party with your mom and dad?"_ Business's voice, amplified with the marble echoing the sound, deafened him.

He had no choice. Failure wasn't an option.

He knew what he had to do.

He forced a frown on his face and grabbed the fallen remote. His parents. He was never going to forgive himself.

"Son?" his father, for a moment truly afraid of him, almost made him stop. Almost.

"Sorry, dad." _I really am._ But even to him his voice sounded cold, more distant. He was building a wall between his emotions, his ethical part of what he wanted to do, and what he had to do. Otherwise he would lose that thread of sanity that he was holding on to so desperately. "I have a job to do."

* * *

So yeah, I managed to cram 2000 words out of three or four minutes of the movie. Never thought it would be so hard. I listened to 'BGM: the transformation' the whole time I was writing this. Dunno why. It kept me writing, that's all. If you didn't listen to it yet, you totally should. It's awesome.

The title means 'losing both' in Latin. Latin is amazing :) I wanted you all to feel what I felt watching the Lego movie for the first time.

I am _so_ tired. I think it's because the time is 4 AM and I hadn't slept a wink yesterday. :D


End file.
